Arsenal pulled Milan, Real Madrid travels to Moscow, Chelsea against Napoli, Barcelon travel to Leverkusen..
On Friday in Nyon there were drawn couples of eighth-finals of Champions League football. Besides encounter of Milan and Arsenal, Napoli and Chelsea, the other couples are more or less not so “attractive”.
Legendary German and a former member of Bayern Munich, Paul Breitner, drew the holders of the group which in the first game, 14 and 15 February, visiting the runners-up teams of group stages. Breitner brought for his Bayern guest appearance in one of the most pleasant surprises this year’s Champions League – Basel
The second biggest surprise of the Champions League, Cypriot APOEL, will play in the first leg in France’s Lyon, who with a major victory against Dinamo Zagreb (7-1) went into the second round.
The most interesting match definitely make Milan and Arsenal. Although the season started disastrously for them, the team of Arsene Wenger is slowly rising, and perhaps until February reaches the desired form, which will hold its invincible traditions against Italian teams. In fact, Arsenal have never in the knock-out stage of UEFA competition expelled from the Italian teams (seven games and one final). In addition, the “gunners” were celebrated at the San Siro against Inter 5-1, and 2-0 against Milan.
The second most interesting macth is of other Italian-English encounters, Napoli and Chelsea. London teams is not going to benefit history of interaction with the Italians, where they in the past five celebrated only once, while in the last seven appearances in Italy, they come out only once as winners.
Real Madrid Jose Mourinho will travel to the east at CSKA Moscow. Although at first glance it seems a certain winner, statistics and history of Russian-Spanish encounter tells us otherwise. Muscovites in five encounter with the Spanish team were never defeated (three wins and two draws).
In other matches Marseille will host the Italian Inter, winner of the the 2010th year. final Russian Zenit will be the first host to the winner of Group C, Benfica, which greatly helped to expel the last year’s finalists in the Champions League – Manchester United. Current champions Barcelona will play the first match away against the German vice champion Bayer Leverkusen. The first meetings are scheduled for 14th and 15 February while second matches will play a week later.
Uefa Championship draw 16/12/2011
Lyon v APOEL
Napoli v Chelsea
Milan v Arsenal
Basel v Bayern
Leverkusen v Barcelona
CSKA v Real Madrid
Zenit v Benfica
Marseille v Inter